Lubricating guide for wire drawing



April 21, 1959 c; w. SMOLLINGER ETAL 83, 3

LUBRICATING GUIDE FOR WIRE DRAWING Filed April 4, 1955 I INVENTORS Carl 652011112361 grad Robcriil Joy.

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ATTORNEY United States Patent LUBRICATING GUIDE FOR WIRE DRAWING I Application April 4, 1955, Serial No. 499,033

7 8 Claims. Cl. 205-19 This invention relates to a device for guiding and assisting in lubricating rod or wire prior to a dry drawing operation.

As a preliminary step to dry drawing nod or wire, its surface must first be coated with a suitable lubricant, such as the various specially prepared greases or drawing compounds, tallow, soap powder, lime, soil mixed with meal or flour, or the like, in order to prevent excessive wear on the die and to produce a smooth wire of uniform section. This material is generally placed in a box on or near the die-holder, so thatthe rod will have to pass through the lubricant before entering the die hole. The only means ordinarily employed for keeping the lubricant mixed is the advancing rod itself.

Insufiicient cleaning, poor lubrication, or small pieces of metal or like gritty substances being drawn into the die with the rod may create sharp-pointed slivers or scratches or other surface defects making it necessary to discard the finished wire. Lubricant which has become tightly packed into the die hole will also interfere with proper drawing then or in subsequent drafts.

One object of our invention, therefore, is to provide an attachment to a dry lubricant box which will agitate the lubricant continually for more thorough mixing, and will provide a heavier and more even distribution of lubricant over the rod or wire without packing in the die.

Another object is to provide a device which will continuously vary the angular relationship between the axes of the die hole and the rod as it enters the die for the purpose of cleaning the die opening and avoiding excessive localized wear around its circumference.

Other objects, purposes and advantages of this invention will appear hereinafter in the specification and in the claims and drawings annexed hereto.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of an embodiment of the invention, showing the travel of the nod through the lubricant box and beneath the roller to the drawing die;

Fig. 2 is a detail view, partly in section, showing the rod passing over the roller;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view, partly in section; and

Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Referring now to the various characters of reference on the drawings, the numeral 1 indicates the rod or wire on its passage through the lubricant 2 contained in the rectangular box 3. The upright opposite side walls 4 of said box 3 engage and support the depending bifurcated pairs of inner and outer side members 5 and 6 which as connected by the top cross member 7 comprise a unitary frame 8. Set bolts 9 and 10 threaded into tapered transverse holes 11 and 12 in the outer side members 6 serve to clamp said frame 8 rigidly upright and in properly spaced relation to the front face of the wire drawing die 36 in holder 37.

Transverse holes 13 and upright holes 14 are drilled ice in the bottom portion of the inner side members 5, the upright holes 14 are tapped out, and bearing blocks 15 are cut from the bottom ends of the inner side members 5 across the transverse holes 13. By means of screws 16 in the holes 14, said bearing blocks 15 hold in secure horizontal alignment the larger end 17 of the shaft 18 in one of the inner side members 5, as does likewise the sleeve 19 encircling the reduced end 20 of said shaft in the other side member 5. Adjacent the larger end 17 of the shaft is an integral circular flange 21 with a central boss 22 and an annular inside rim 23, and adjacent the other end of the shaft is a threaded portion 24 for receiving a threaded washer 25 also having a central boss 26 and an annular rim 27.

Rotatably mounted on the central portion 28 of said shaft is an idler roller 29, centrally bored as at 30 to receive the shaft 18 and having at each end a large round central recess 31 in which a bearing 32 is press fitted and a concentric annular recess 33 for receiving one of the rims 23 or 27 to provide a dust tight enclosure for the bearings.

Said holder 29 is provided with a circumferential groove 34 which is inclined at an angle, for example, about 3 to 15, with respect to the adjacent vertical center line of the roller, the center line of said groove 34 being coincident with said vertical center line at two diametrically opposed points. This groove 34 is of continually varying depth, the bottom of said groove presenting in crosssection a circular contour which is eccentric with respect to the rotation of the roller 29. Said roller 29 is additionally provided with a plurality of fluted teeth or ribs 35 oppositely inclined on each side of the groove 34 after the manner of a so-called herringbone or V-shaped gear, the slope of said teeth or ribs being upwardly toward the central groove 34. The outer edges of said groove 34 may be somewhat rounded off or relieved as in Figs. 3 and 4 to assist the free passage of the rod.

In the operation of this device, the rod 1 enters the lubricant 2 in the box 3 at a slight downward or upward angle, and travels in the groove 34 either under or over the roller 29 to the adjacent wire drawing die 36. The roller 29 is rotated frictiona lly by the rod 1 as it is drawn forward through the die. The fluted teeth 35 stir up the particles of lubricant 2 and push them toward the die. The angularly disposed groove 34 gives the rod 1 a lateral movement with respect to the die, while at the same time the rod is given a vertical movement with respect to the die by virtue of the varying depth of the groove 34. The resulting motion of the rod 1 gives uniform wear on all sides of the die, prevents loose slivers from sticking to the die, keeps lubricant from packing tightly in the die hole, and causes a thicker and more uniform coating of lubricant for further drawing to be deposited on the wire.

Although we have shown and described our invention hereinabove in considerable detail, we do not wish to be limited narrowly to the specific parts and structures mentioned above, but we may also use such substitutions, modifications, or equivalents thereof as are embraced within the scope of the invention or as are pointed out in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In apparatus for drawing moving rod or wire, the combination, with a holder containing lubricant, of a support attached to the holder, and roller means mounted on said holder and having ribbed portions adapted for stirring the lubricant and causing it to be deposited uniformly on the moving rod as the latter engages and rotates the roller means.

2. In apparatus for drawing rod or wire, the combination, with a lubricant holder and a following drawing die, of a roller mounted for rotation in said holder,

said roller having a diagonal groove of continuously varying depth through which the rod travels in constantly changing inclination with relation to the die.

3. In a device for use in connection with drawing rod or wire, the combination, with a drawing die and a container of lubricant through which the rod passes prior to drawing, of a frame adapted for mounting on the container, a horizontal shaft in said frame, and an idler roller on said shaft provided with a rod receiving circumferential groove inclined with respect to the axis of rotation for laterally traversing the rod through the lubricant.

4. In a device for use in connection with drawing rod or wire, the combination, with a drawing die and a container of lubricant through which the rod passes of a frame adapted for mounting on the container, a horizontal shaft in said frame, and an idler roller on said shaft provided with a rod receiving circumferential groove the bottom of which is eccentric with respect to the axis :of

rotation :of the roller, thereby imparting a range of the lubricant.

vertical movement to the rod.

5. In a device for use in connection with drawing rod or wire, the combination, with a drawing die and an anterior lubricant holder, of a frame adapted for attachment to the holder, a shaft in said frame, and an idler roller on said shaft provided with a groove in frictional engagement with the rod and ribbed surface portions adapted to agitate the lubricant as the roller is rotated.

6. In a device for use in connection with drawing rod or wire, the combination, with a drawing die and a holder for lubricant, of a frame, means for clamping the frame to the holder, a horizontal shaft in said frame, and an idler roller on said shaft provided with a circumferential groove disposed at an angle with respect to the vertical center line of the roller.

7. In a device for use in connection with drawing rod or wire, the combination, with a drawing die and a holder for lubricant, of a frame, means for attaching the frame to the holder, a horizontal shaft mounted in said frame, and an idler roller rotatable on said shaft, said roller being provided with a diagonal endless eccentric groove for engaging and traversing the rod in an inclined, circular, eccentric path to the die, thereby keeping the die opening clean and causing a thicker and more uniform coating of lubricant to be deposited on the wire.

8. In a device for use in connection with drawing rod or wire, the combination with a drawing die and a holder for lubricant, of a frame attachable to the holder, and an idler roller journaled in said frame, said roller having an oblique endless circumferential groove of varying depth, the bottom of said groove having a circular contour in cross-section eccentric with respect to the rotational axis of the roller, and ribs of opposite inclination on opposite sides of the groove on thesurface of the roller for stirring v References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Great Britain 1909 

